1 March 2018 – The race for top spot in the SAFA ABC Motsepe League was taken up a notch this past weekend when teams raised their hands in the run up for play-off places.
At the moment, Free State is one league with the most gripping race with Mangaung Unite and Tshiame All Stars fighting for the seat at the top.
It was Mangaung who managed to ascend this past weekend after they took advantage of Tshiame’s shock 3-1 defeat to Days FC, beating Central University 3-1 to go top. The win took Mangaung to 46 points after 20 matches, while Tshiame are now on 34 points.
The two sides at the top are also aware that they cannot afford to rest as Bloemfontein Celtic is right behind them on 40 points after beating Sibanye Golden Stars 1-0.
Following their slip up against M Tigers in the Gauteng SAFA ABC Motsepe League this past weekend, Maccabi FC are now at the risk of being caught by second placed JDR Stars.
JDR took advantage when they beat rivals Thembisa Sports Centre to move to 44 points, as Maccabi’s draw moved them to 48 points.
Another win by JDR Stars will see them trail Maccabi by a single point. Behind Maccabi is Alexandra United on 39 points after they lost 1-0 to Dondol Stars.
Milford FC put a spanner in the works in KwaZulu Natal when they beat second placed Ashley United 3-2 to solidify their third spot on the log. This means Milford now are on 30 points, trailing Ashley by five, while they also have two games in hand, putting them at an advantage to jump to second on 36 points should they manage to win their next two games. At the top is Umvoti, who moved to 44 points after their goalless draw against Ladysmith United.
Limpopo too is another league that is likely to go down to the wire after Joe Maweja held leaders The Dolphins to a 2-2 draw, giving second placed Boyne Tigers some space to catch up.
Boyne are second on the log with 48 points from 23 matches, while The Dolphins are at the top with four points more.
Boyne’s previous match ended in a 3-0 win over Mighty FC.
Phiva Young Stars remained top of Mpumalanga after beating Secunda Stars 3-0, increasing their points tally to 55 from 21 games, while TS Sporting are second with 51 points from 23 matches.
The North West is under the control of Buya Msuthu, who have 10 points more than second placed Palmeiros, even though Palmeiros have played a game less.
ACE FC are the leading team in Western Cape on 49 points, followed by Steenberg United on 43, even though Steenberg have played two games less than ACE.
The Eastern Cape is led by Tornado on 55 points from 20 games, with PE Stars following on 43 points after the same number of games. EC Bees are third on 39 points from 19 games.